Karen Gillan has shared her hopes for Jumanji 3, including who she wants to "play" her in-game character Ruby Roundhouse during the movie. Gillan is lined up to return for the as-yet untitled third Jumanji film, along with her Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle costars Dwayne Johnson (Dr. Smolder Bravestone), Kevin Hart (Franklin "Moose" Finbar), and Jack Black (Professor Sheldon "Shelly" Oberon).
Welcome to the Jungle takes place in the same universe as 1995's Jumanji and became an unexpected box office smash hit over the past winter holiday season. The film has been hanging around the top 10 at the U.S. box office since it opened back in December and its worldwide gross has swollen to $930 million, making it Sony's second highest-grossing film ever. Naturally, Sony is moving forward with a third Jumanji movie, featuring not only the same adult cast but also two of the four writers that worked on Welcome to the Jungle (Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg), and director Jake Kasdan.
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Much of the gentle humor that has won Welcome to the Jungle audiences' favor comes from its premise, which involves four teenagers getting sucked into the world of Jumanji (now a video game instead of a board game) and having to "play" as one of the game's characters. In the film, Gillan's athletic and dance-fighting Ruby Roundhouse serves as the avatar for Martha (Morgan Turner), a socially and physically awkward teenaged girl. Speaking with Screen Rant for Welcome to the Jungle's home video release, Gillan revealed that she has a very different idea for who should "play" Ruby in Jumanji 3:
"I'd like to play an old man. That would be funny [...] Playing Ruby Roundhouse's character."
Welcome to the Jungle deftly avoids resorting to either cheap jokes or poor taste humor when it comes to its body-swapping premise. That extends to Gillan's performance as Ruby, which allows the Doctor Who and Guardians of the Galaxy star a chance to properly show off her skills in the area of physical comedy especially. Getting to play an frail old man who can suddenly move, dance, and fight like Ruby would allow Gillan to do that in a different way for Jumanji 3, giving rise to a fresh set of jokes in the process.
There are, of course, other ways for Jumanji 3 to mix things up. One such idea would be to transport the game's characters into the real world, rather than in the vast jungle landscapes of Jumanji itself. If something like that does happen, then Gillan told us she wouldn't mind a change in shooting location to go with it:
"I would be alright with shooting in New York City actually, compared to Hawaii. Less mosquitos."
Since the rules that govern the game Jumajji appear relatively lax, there doesn't seem to be anything preventing Jumanji 3 from bringing characters like Ruby, Dr. Bravestone, and the rest of the crew into our world (rather than us into theirs). While that wouldn't allow Gillan to play an old man like she wants, it could give rise to some fun comedic moments and set pieces that pit video game mechanics against the physical laws of the real world. Part of what makes Welcome to the Jungle so much fun is that it takes the basic concept of Jumaji and just runs with it from there. If Jumanji 3 manages to be similarly playful and creative in its approach, then it could turn out to be just as much fun as its predecessor.
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Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is now available on Digital and hits Blu-ray/DVD on Tuesday, March 20.